If you have been using other social networks in favor of Google Plus, your business could be missing out on some very important benefits.

In the last few years the network has undergone some major updates—including the way it helps businesses connect with customers and prospects. This guide will give you a quick primer on everything you need to know about Google Plus and how to put it to work for your brand.

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Why Google Plus for business?

Like all social networks, Google Plus, also known as Google+, presents an opportunity to connect with a community of customers and fans. Unlike other networks, Google Plus has significant impact on SEO and search traffic volume. Here’s why you should pay attention:

Local search results

Google Plus Pages for businesses are now managed through Google My Business, a platform that makes it easy for customers to find and connect with your company. Google My Business uses Search, Maps, and Google Plus to make your brand more visible in local search results. For example, when I search “coffee shops Seattle,” Google Plus listings are at the top of my search with all the relevant information:

If you’re hoping to make your company more discoverable (and easy to locate geographically) Google has handed you the tools you need on a silver platter. As a study from Optify tells us, it pays to be at the top. Websites that appear on the first page of Google get 54.8 percent of all clicks from users.

Resources at your disposal

In addition to Google Plus, you have a ton of other Google resources at your disposal—Communities, YouTube, Gmail, Google Maps, Hangouts, AdWords—all intended to help you maximize your marketing strategy.

Community engagement

By strategically organizing your connections on Google Plus, you can segment key audiences and share relevant content. It’s a great opportunity to get +1s, reshares, and replies. A study conducted by Hubspot showed that sites using the +1 button get 3.5 times more visits on Google Plus. This is a great opportunity for you to join the discussion or get engagement on your own content.

How to set up your Google Plus account for business

If you haven’t set up your Google Plus account (or can’t remember if you created one), hold tight. We’ll show you how to build one from scratch or migrate your existing business Page over to Google My Business.

1. Create a Google My Business account

First, you need a Google My Business account. Once it’s set up, you automatically have access to a Google Plus for business page. If you own multiple businesses in different locations, you need to set up a Google my Business account for each one of them as your business shows up in search based on location. Remember, you can always log in through Gmail to view your existing Google Plus Pages.

2. Select your business type

Before creating your Business Page, you’ll be prompted to select your business type. You have three options to choose from: Storefront, Service Area, or Brand. Storefront and Service Area options are for local businesses, while Brand is for products or other business types that are not attached to a particular location. If you select one of the first two options, then you’ll be prompted to give your business name and geographic location (unless you’ve already done so in step one). Your options will appear as follows:

Bonus:Download a free guide to discover how to get more sales and conversions with social media monitoring on Hootsuite—no tricks or boring tips.

Storefront: If you want people to physically come into your business and buy products, this option is for you. In search results, your Google Plus Page will show location, hours, or other contact info.

Service Area: If you run a service location and you’d like people to be able to identify your proximity to them, choose this option. In search results, your Google Plus Page will show location, hours, or other contact info.

Brand: If you want to engage and chat with customers or your business doesn’t operate out of a specific location, this option is for you. Your Google Plus Page won’t show location, hours, or other contact info.

3. Add your information

Next, you’ll get form fill requests where you add your business information. Follow these tips to ensure your business profile stands out and receives more engagement:

Double check that the information is correct. All of the information you provide needs to be 100 percent accurate. If you misspell your address or add the wrong hours, that can seriously damage the customer experience.

Use relevant keywords in your description. Use simple, human language that includes relevant keywords that describe your business.

This will show you all listings and indicate if you have any duplicate listings. For detailed instructions on how to remove old pages, you can follow these instructions.

Alternatively, if you want to remove a location within Google My Business, you can access your list view, select the locations you want to remove by clicking on the three dot menu, then select “Remove.”

Google Plus features you should know about

Like any social network, if you sign up and never use it, Google Plus won’t be of much help to your business. In order to maximize the opportunities that it offers, you should aim to stay active and take advantage of the following:

Circles

You can organize your People into different Circles, such as customers or influencers, which let you target your messaging to the right people. A fashion retailer, for example, might create a circle of fashion bloggers and then share updates on their seasonal lines with them.

Communities and Collections

In November 2015, Google Plus was redesigned to make it easier for people to discover unique and interesting things related to their interests.

The redesign focused the product on two major features, Collections and Communities. Collections allow you to follow and share around specific topics, so it’s easy to see updates related to just the things you’re into. Communities make it easy to connect with people who are interested in the same things you are. Recently, that new experience became the default for all Google Plus users.

Using Google Plus in Hootsuite

With the release of the new Google Plus API, it’s possible for anyone to post to Google Plus from Hootsuite— whether you’d like to post via a Google Plus page or profile.

This means that all Google Plus users can:

Cross post to their Google Plus pages or profiles right from Hootsuite

Schedule posts in advance

See detailed analytics on their Google Plus posts and better understand their audience

Share the good stuff they find while browsing the web with Hootlet, Hootsuite’s Chrome extension